Joe Russo’s Almost Dead brought its hyper-creative, rocking interpretations of Grateful Dead tunes to The Sylvee in the chilly college town of Madison, WI for a one-night stand neither will feel bad about in the morning. It’s the band’s tenth-anniversary celebratory lap around the country and this year has seen the improvisational quintet take its stylistic recreations of these beloved songs to an even further beyond-the-norm point than before. After a decade of it, no one can fault drummer Joe Russo, guitarists Tom Hamilton and Scott Metzger, bassist Dave Dreiwitz, and perma-grinning keyboardist Marco Benevento for feeling like they’ve earned the right to get a little crazy with their jams as they’ve no doubt earned it.
Bandleader Russo and his “Almost Dead” bandmates started the show with a remarkably delicate touch. A slowly awakening symphony of sounds approached show opener “Jack-A-Roe” tentatively, slowly building it into a rocking crescendo. Metzger and Hamilton provided some intense guitar fireworks to close out the instrumental passages before the last round of lyrics, wailing and working their fretboard flying fingers to the bone. With the crowd and themselves properly warmed up they settled into the task at hand, providing the sold-out crowd with their idiosyncratic take on the dense, beloved catalog of musical masterpieces by the Grateful Dead.
After getting deep into the bluesier roots of the Dead with “Alligator” and “New Minglewood Blues”, JRAD went for a joyride on the Smokey Robinson framework of “I Second That Emotion” which gave the audience the green light to get their boogie on. Their Jerry Garcia-penned deconstruction of “China Cat Sunflower” fell into a perky “Gonesville’ which provided Metzger and Benevento a chance to play to each other’s strengths, producing one of the evening’s absolute best jams.
Joe Russo’s Almost Dead – “Jack-A-Roe” (Traditional), “Alligator” – 11/30/23
Joe Russo’s Almost Dead – “Alligator”, “I Second That Emotion” (Smokey Robinson) – 11/30/23
[Video: Scott Sigman]
Taking no time to stop, JRAD went straight into one of the few bands whose body of work is more respected than its usual Dead-based shenanigans, with a tumbling, rocking take on The Beatles’ “I’ve Just Seen A Face” before regaining its light touch on a spacey, emotive run through “Bird Song”. After a lurching, jammy conclusion Russo took to the microphone for a quick round of band intros before clearing the stage for a much-needed set break.
Set two got off to a similar start with a jam which started light before becoming massive and finally setting into the fan favorite “Eyes Of The World”. From there, the boogie-down precedent that ran throughout the first stanza returned in force with a poppy “Dancing In The Streets”. JRAD learned the formula of the Dead’s best sets, but even with that knowledge and the inherent skill to pull it off, the band decidedly busts conventions everywhere it goes. Sometimes a dance party can just be a dance party, after all.
Revved up and ready Hamilton took the mic for a wildly-charged “Cream Puff War” before “Mission In The Rain” provided the last contemplative moment of the evening. After a half-hearted attempt to convince folks there was going to be a fake encore break, a raucous “Sugar Magnolia” chugged clear through the “Sunshine Daydream” coda and all the way to a “Deal” finale that centered around some delicious roadhouse-style piano licks and runs from the night’s lynchpin, Marco Benevento.
Related: Marco Benevento Details ‘Barn Burner: Live At Levon’s’ Double Album [Listen]
The strength of Joe Russo’s Almost Dead is the wild variations the band often partakes in during its re-imaginings, but on nights like Thursday when more conventional versions rule it’s still a wonderful time for all involved. That just shows the timelessness and unending love the Grateful Dead created. It’s the reason Joe Russo and Co. are celebrating this tenth anniversary with no end to the band in sight. The music will live on long past the Dead founders, the direct followers, and the generations to come. That’s a pretty comforting thought, knowing that good music, love, and improvisational feel-good music will be waiting for new ears to discover them for centuries onward.
Check out a gallery of images from Joe Russo’s Almost Dead at The Sylvee in Madison courtesy of photographer Daniel Ojeda. The band’s tenth-anniversary tour comes to a close with a two-night stand at Chicago’s Riviera Theatre this weekend. For tickets and a list of upcoming tour dates visit JRAD’s website.
Setlist: Joe Russo’s Almost Dead | The Sylvee | Madison, WI | 11/30/23
Set One: Jack-A-Roe (Traditional), Alligator, New Minglewood Blues (Cannon’s Jug Stompers), I Second That Emotion (Smokey Robinson & The Miracles) > China Cat Sunflower, Gonesville, I’ve Just Seen a Face (The Beatles), Bird Song
Set Two: Eyes Of The World, Dancing In The Street (Martha Reeves and the Vandellas), Silvio (Bob Dylan), Cream Puff War, King Solomon’s Marbles, Mission In The Rain
Encore: Sugar Magnolia > Sunshine Daydream, Deal
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